


Maid to Order

by pikacutie25



Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°), Alisha's in deep, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas Eve, Don't let Sorey give relationship advice, F/F, Fluff, Getting Together, Implied sormik, It's a bad idea, Just don't, Maid Cafe, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Sparrowfeathers, They all make an appearance at some point, You'll know it when you see it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-12 13:57:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9074890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pikacutie25/pseuds/pikacutie25
Summary: 'Breathe,' Alisha tells herself calmly. 'You can do this, you’re not alone.' Looking over at her accomplice walking next to her, she reminds herself that yes, this is happening, and yes, everything is going to be alright. After weeks of scouting the place out to determine if this is indeed the one, she has come to the overwhelming conclusion that this has to be it, there’s no way she could be mistaken. And her hunches were never wrong...right?“Alisha?” Sorey cuts into her thoughts, a worried edge to his voice.“Y-yes?” Alisha replies, unable to hide her nervousness.Sorey looks her over for a second, then grins and gives her a thumbs-up. “Don’t worry! I’m sure this Rose girl likes you, too!”Alisha simply sighs.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Or: In which Rose works at a maid café, Alisha is In Love™, and Sorey is a very unhelpful wingman





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Iovekokoro](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Iovekokoro).



> For @Iovekokoro on twitter for #talesofsanta2016, here's my very first roseali fic! I hope you enjoy! :D

_Breathe,_ Alisha tells herself calmly. _You can do this, you’re not alone._ Looking over at her accomplice walking next to her, she reminds herself that yes, this is happening, and yes, everything is going to be alright. After weeks of scouting the place out to determine if this is indeed the one, she has come to the overwhelming conclusion that this has to be it, there’s no way she could be mistaken. And her hunches were never wrong...right?

“Alisha?” Sorey cuts into her thoughts, a worried edge to his voice.

“Y-yes?” Alisha replies, unable to hide her nervousness.

Sorey looks her over for a second, then grins and gives her a thumbs-up. “Don’t worry! I’m sure this Rose girl likes you, too!”

Alisha simply sighs.

Looking back on it now, she realizes that the whole situation is pretty ridiculous. One day, she figured out she was tired of constantly being holed up in her father’s stuffy mansion, so she decided to finally go explore the nearby city. After a few hours of taking in the exotic sights, sounds, and smells of the bustling town, she found herself stopped in front of a peculiar-looking café. _The Sparrowfeathers’ Nest_ , it was called. With curiosity - and a slight hunger - taking the better of her, Alisha decided to stop inside for a bite.

She found herself greeted very enthusiastically by a lively girl dressed in a maid outfit. Alisha’s mind helpfully noted, almost immediately, that she was _really_ cute. Her striking red hair stood out magnificently against her black-and-white uniform, which perfectly highlighted her well-shaped figure, and…Alisha very quickly realized that she had fallen into a hole that she would probably never escape. At least the universe was kind enough to immediately let her know the name of her undoing, in the form of a helpful nametag on the girl’s uniform that read “Rose” with a cute little heart next to it.

Even now, Alisha is still surprised that she managed to act normal during her first visit to the café. She could barely speak a full sentence without tripping over her words, to the point that her private teachers at home would be ashamed of her language capabilities. Subsequent times still found her as a spluttering wreck, just not as severely as the first.

Eventually, Alisha decided that she was tired of only fantasizing about being with the cute maid and now, here she was, standing outside the café, about to ask the redhead out. She asked her close friend Sorey to come with her, both as moral support and to help her determine beforehand whether or not Rose actually reciprocated any of her feelings.

No matter how much Sorey keeps reassuring her, Alisha is still worried. She has never had a crush on anyone else before, and she can’t recall anyone ever liking her either, so her lack of experience is currently torturing her with nasty what-ifs.

After several long minutes of Alisha’s poor attempt at stalling, Sorey finally speaks up. “Come on, I know you can do this! I believe in you!” 

Alisha sighs and hesitates another moment, then finally says, “You’re right. Let’s go.”

Steeling herself, she opens the door to the café, where they are immediately greeted by...not Rose. Alisha frowns as she finds herself face-to-face with one of the other workers of the café that she’s come to know, a girl named Felice. “Oh, Alisha! Nice to see you again!” she greets, bowing. After her gesture, she turns to face Sorey and adds, “And welcome to The Sparrowfeathers’ Nest! Table for...two?”

Alisha notes that the girl is probably confused - since she has never been accompanied here by anyone else before - so she nods and says, “That’s right.”

Felice faithfully leads the two of them to a table in the corner, leaves them with menus, then says, “Rose just stepped out, but she’ll be with you in a minute,” before departing with a knowing smile.

As Alisha watches her leave, she notices that the café is...uncharacteristically empty. Only one other group of customers is present, and they even seem to be wrapping up. Alisha sees Felice stop behind the bar counter and say something to the bartender named Eguille, who glances in their direction before replying.

Before Alisha could think too long about their slightly odd behavior, Sorey pipes up, “Whoa, look at all the different things they offer!”

Alisha turns to look at him, and finds him practically overflowing with childish delight. Thankful that she has a friend here to help distract her from unnecessary thoughts, she smiles and replies, “Yes, they do have a lot here.”

“Hey, hey, what do you usually get?” he asks excitedly, looking up from his menu.

“Well, I -”

“Alisha!” a familiar voice interrupts her, and she suddenly registers that another person has materialized in front of their table.

“Oh, Rose!” Alisha says, surprised by the sudden appearance of none other than the very girl that she is here for.

“Nice to see you come back and visit me again,” Rose exclaims cheerily, “and on Christmas Eve, of all days!”

“O-of course!” Alisha replies nervously, hoping that her blush isn't as visible as it feels.

Seeming to only now become aware of a third party at the table, Rose looks towards Sorey and asks, somewhat hesitantly, “Is this your, um…”

“I’m Alisha’s friend, Sorey!” he responds on cue, grinning widely.

At that statement, Rose immediately brightens up again. “Well, nice to meet you then, Sorey!” Shifting into work-mode, she continues, “So, have either of you decided what you’ll be having?”

“I’ll have my usual,” Alisha tells her with a small smile.

“You’ve got it, sweetheart,” Rose says with a knowing smile. Turning to Sorey, she adds, “And you?”

“Um.” Sorey quickly looks at his menu again, then says simply, “I’ll have whatever she’s having!”

Rose quirks her eyebrows with amusement, then shrugs. “Alrighty then. I’ll be right back with your drinks!” She shoots a very obvious wink at Alisha before departing, a noticeable spring in her step.

“Wait, so what did we order?” Sorey inquires, unable to suppress his curiosity.

“Oh, just a cappuccino and sandwich plate,” Alisha replies. Sorey simply hums in acknowledgment.

After she’s sure Rose is out of earshot, Alisha leans in towards Sorey and urgently asks, “So, what do you think? About Rose?”

“Hm…” Sorey crosses his arms for a few seconds in thought. “I couldn’t really tell. Could go either way.” When Alisha deflates at his conclusion, he hurriedly adds, “But I’m sure she really does like you, don’t worry!” 

Alisha sits in silence for a minute, attempting to draw her own conclusions on the situation. Before she can say anything else, however, Rose is already back with their drinks.

“Here ya go!” she singsongs, placing the steaming cappuccinos in front of them. “And your food should be out shortly, as well!” And before either Alisha or Sorey could respond, Rose is already out of sight once again.

“Wow, is she always like this?” Sorey sweatdrops.

“Well...she does seem to be running around more than usual,” Alisha admits with a laugh.

Turning their attention towards their drinks, Sorey notes, “Oh, wow! She drew on the drinks!”

“Oh, yes! They always draw on the foam of the hot drinks here,” Alisha clarifies.

“Is it always a tiny smiley face? Wait...is that a smiley face?”

“A smiley face?” Alisha knits her brows in confusion. “She’s always drawn a heart in mine…” Looking down at her own drink, she notices that there is indeed still a heart drawn in the middle. However, this time, the big heart is accompanied by several other smaller hearts.

“Mmm! This is good!” Sorey exclaims.

Looking back up at Sorey, Alisha realizes that Sorey has already started downing his cappuccino, and now has a very flattering foam mustache as a result. Giggling at her friend’s impatience when it came to anything relating to food, she decides to follow suit and starts sipping on her own drink. 

By the time Alisha is barely halfway through her own drink, Sorey has already finished his. “My, you drank that so quickly,” Alisha says, slightly surprised. “Wasn’t that really hot on your throat?”

“Was it? I guess I’m just used to having all kinds of stuff go down my throat,” Sorey says sheepishly.

“I see…” Alisha says, not quite understanding, but not questioning all the same.

“Hi there again!” Rose interjects at the perfect time. If Alisha didn’t know better, she’d say that Rose almost seems embarrassed as she sets their food down in front of them. “Here’s your food! I hope you enjoy!” And then she’s off again, this time mumbling to herself. Alisha swears she catches something along the lines of “well that explains it...” 

“Does she seem...off?” Alisha asks worriedly.

“Well...this is my first time meeting her, so I wouldn’t know,” Sorey shrugs, taking a bite of the sandwich that was placed in front of him.

“You’re right,” Alisha sighs. 

After a few minutes of silence - in which Sorey somehow demolished his sandwich while Alisha only managed a few small bites - she finally speaks up again. “Sorey...what do you think I should do?”

Having successfully finished off every piece of food in front of him, Sorey now gives her his full attention. After brainstorming for a few moments, Alisha can almost see a metaphorical lightbulb go off in his head. “Hey, why don’t you try debating the inconsistencies in the Celestial Record with her? That’s how I got closer to Mikleo!”

“Is it really?” Alisha ponders his suggestion for a minute. Then, she continues, smiling, “Well, I suppose I would like to hear what she thinks about the transition to the Era of Asgard…”

“Right?” Sorey agrees excitedly. “I promise, it’ll work perfectly!” He gives her a thumbs-up and a wide grin again, just like he had earlier.

“So, how are you guys doing?” Rose interjects with impeccable timing yet again.

“Oh, we’re doing well!” Alisha replies. “We’ll take the checks now, actually.”

“Alright!” Rose extracts a pair of checks from somewhere in her clothes and hands them to Sorey and Alisha. They look at the papers briefly, then quickly get their cards out to pay.

“Say, do you still have your loyalty card?” Rose asks after taking everything back, then looks at Alisha expectantly.

“Ah, I do!” Alisha says, fishing the aforementioned card out of her wallet and handing it to Rose.

“Perfect!” Rose takes the card and walks away with another wink, saying, “I’ll be right back!”

After a short minute - during which Sorey simply commented on the high quality of the food, and Alisha agreed that yes, Rosh is an amazing chef - Rose returns with their cards and receipts, along with another one of the café workers, Talfryn. “Congratulations, Alisha!” she says, beaming at the blonde. When Alisha only gives a look of confusion in return, Rose elaborates, “You’ve just now saved up enough points to redeem for a prize!”

“Whoa, congrats, Alisha!” Sorey throws in, clapping.

“Oh, my…” Alisha says, a light blush touching her cheeks.

“Soooo, ta-da!” Rose sings, pulling a camera out from somewhere. “You get a complimentary photograph with the hottest maid in the house!” Alisha’s cheeks darken as Rose winks again and hands the camera to Talfryn, who seems to be holding back a smile.

Kneeling down next to Alisha, Rose waves for her to get closer. As she scoots closer to the subject of her affections, Alisha’s blush increases even more, and she wonders if the camera will capture it. Hopefully not, since that would be really embarrassing to look at later.

“Say cheese!” Talfryn calls out, positioned to take the picture. Rose suddenly throws her arm around Alisha, and wow, Alisha is sure that she can’t possibly get any redder at this point…

 _Click!_ And that’s it, the picture is taken. Alisha desperately hopes that she hadn’t accidentally made some kind of strange face. Once the photo has finished printing from the camera, Talfryn hands it to her with a smile, then gives her his regards before retreating to somewhere in the back.

“Well, this was fun!” Sorey suddenly speaks up after a short silence, making his presence known again. Alisha - suddenly remembering that she came with a companion - turns to face Sorey, who is now standing up beside the table. “I’ve gotta get back home though, so I’ll leave you here to wrap things up!” He shoots a painfully obvious wink at Alisha, then departs, leaving the two girls alone together.

“Soooo,” Rose casually begins, after the bell above the entrance has stopped jingling from Sorey’s departure. “Do you have anywhere you need to be after this, princess?”

“Oh!” Alisha says, surprised by the sudden straightforward question. “Not at all. I’m free for the rest of the day.”

“Perfect!” Rose immediately perks up, apparently liking Alisha’s answer. “I’m about to get off work, so…” she hesitates for a moment; then, with a barely-noticeable blush, she continues, “...wanna go to the park together?”

Seeing this as the perfect opportunity to strike up that conversation with her, Alisha enthusiastically agrees, “Yes!”

“Alright!” Rose cheers, delighted. Standing up, she says, “I’m just gonna go get changed real quick, be right back!” then dashes off.

Exactly thirty seconds later, Rose is running back to the table, fully changed. If Alisha thought Rose’s maid outfit was cute, then her current outfit is attractive in a fashionably casual way. Alisha gets the wonderful feeling that Rose is capable of looking good in any kind of outfit.

“O-kay!” Rose enunciates. “You ready to get going?”

* * * * *

Conveniently, the park they now find themselves at is right across the street from the café, so their walk there was very short and uneventful. Alisha is fairly certain that she acted like a normal human being while walking next to Rose, going off of the fact that she hasn’t run away screaming yet. In fact, Alisha thinks they’re actually getting along quite splendidly, as Rose is sitting fairly close to her on a bench and seems to be pretty relaxed. Alisha, on the other hand, sincerely hopes that her rapid heartbeat is not noticeable.

“So I said to the guy,” Rose continues the story that she had been telling, “‘Sir, this is a maid café, not a bar. I’m sorry that your girlfriend dumped you, but if you keep causing a scene, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.’”

As she recounts the tale, Rose is energetically gesturing in an attempt to convey the emotions she had felt at the time, which Alisha finds quite endearing. “And then - you won’t believe it - he starts going off on _me_! Like it’s _my_ fault his girlfriend realized he had such an ugly faux hawk!”

Alisha giggles at the statement, and Rose smiles in return before continuing again. “So then I said, ‘Sir, you’ve heard of the mighty Shepherd, right? He who smites any and all who would dare threaten the peace of this fine town?’ And then he suddenly gets real quiet. He’s like, ‘Y-yeah? So what?’ And then I just kneel down to him, and I whisper in his ear: ‘He’s my boyfriend.’ And, oh my god, you should have _seen_ how fast he ran out of the place, screaming like a little girl!” And now, her story finished, Rose starts laughing like Alisha has never heard her laugh before, and she can’t help but join in.

After their laughter has settled down, they sit in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, taking in the winter scenery. Alisha chances a glance at Rose, and finds that her cheeks are a lovely shade of pink, likely from the frosty air. _Rose-y cheeks?_ Alisha suppresses a giggle at the thought of the unintentional pun, and instead opts to turn her attention elsewhere. Like to the several snowflakes that decorate the tips of Rose’s vibrant hair, or to the tiny puffs of air that she is breathing out from between her lips...

Realizing that she is staring too much, Alisha determines that she needs to distract herself before she does something she’ll regret. Deciding that now is probably as good a time as any to broach the subject, Alisha begins, “So, Rose...you know about the Celestial Record, right?”

“Uh, yeah...that book that details the earliest parts of history, right?” Rose replies, a little uncertainly.

“Yes!” Alisha says enthusiastically, becoming excited at the prospect of discussing one of her favorite topics. “So, you know how the start of the Era of Asgard was signalled by the death of the great king, right?”

“U-uh, I guess...?”

“Most of our records show that he succumbed to illness, and that’s probably true,” Alisha continues, now in complete nerd mode. “But we also know that he always acted against the wishes of his advisor, and that he was disapproved of as a result. So, what if the king was actually poisoned by his advisor, partially in an attempt to ascend to the throne? This would better explain why he fled the country after the king’s death, since it doesn’t make much sense why he wouldn’t want to serve the new king otherwise!” 

After Rose is silent for a few seconds, she seems to realize that a response is required and says, “I...suppose so?”

Alisha, finally recognizing Rose’s lack of useful input as a lack of interest in the topic itself, immediately deflates. “Oh, gosh, I’m so sorry…”

“Huh? For what?”

“For boring you with such an uninteresting topic,” Alisha sighs dejectedly, then stands up. “I’m sorry, this was all a mistake, I should-”

“Wait!” Rose stands up as well and grabs her arm, stopping her from leaving.

Alisha turns back around to face the other girl, and notices that Rose looks genuinely sad that she was about to leave. Alisha’s mouth moves to form the question, “Why?” but she isn’t able to get the word out.

Rose gives her a sad smile, then asks, “Do you honestly think that one boring conversation is enough to completely turn me off from spending time with you?”

“I…” Alisha looks down, unable to come up with a response, and notices that Rose is still holding her arm.

“Look, I’m not spending time with you because I like what we talk about.”

Alisha looks up again at the somewhat harsh words, only to find that Rose’s expression is softer than it’s ever been, and are her cheeks even darker than before…?

“I’m here with you because I _like_ you,” Rose finishes with a determined look.

 _Like...like...huh?_ Alisha’s mind couldn’t process the words she heard. “You...what?”

Sighing in frustration, Rose mutters, “Guess I gotta lay it out for you, huh…” When Alisha’s expression becomes even more confused, Rose continues, “You are an amazing person. You always brighten up my day whenever you come in to the café for a visit, and when you leave, I immediately look forward to your next one. And...you’re also really cute.” she finishes quietly.

Alisha stands in stunned silence for a while, before intelligently replying, “I-I’m sorry, I’m what?”

“You. Are. Cute.” Rose enunciates to get the point across, painfully aware now of how oblivious Alisha is. “Beautiful, actually, now that you’re making me look at you so much.”

Alisha fully registers what Rose has said now, but is still unsure. “Are...are you flirting with me?”

“Have been for the past month, sweetheart, but thanks for noticing.” 

“O-oh, my...I had no idea…” Alisha says, completely shocked now.

Rose’s mouth drops open, and she finally lets go of Alisha’s arm. “...wait. Are you saying you agreed to go on a date with me - on _Christmas Eve_ \- without even knowing that much!?”

“A-a date!?” Alisha stumbles backwards, putting a hand to her head. “T-this was…?”

Rose covers her face with her hands, mumbling, “I can’t believe there are actually people this dense…”

“I-I guess I didn’t need to follow Sorey’s advice after all,” Alisha laughs nervously.

Rose stares at Alisha in disbelief. “You - he - you asked _him_ for relationship advice!?”

When Alisha only fidgets in embarrassment, Rose murmurs, “Almost ruined this whole thing, is what he did.” After heaving a long sigh, she continues, “Well, what’s past is past. So, Alisha, I’m pretty sure we’re both on the same page, but.” Alisha simply looks at her, encouraging her to continue. Taking a deep breath, Rose finishes, “Will you go out with me?”

Alisha feels herself breaking into the widest smile she’s made in a long time. “Yes.”

“Alisha!” The blonde barely has time to breathe before Rose tackles her with a hug, and she almost loses her balance. But she doesn’t mind; it feels right, being in her arms like this.

After a few minutes, Rose finally breaks the hug and asks, curiously, “Say, come to think of it, how did that photo end up turning out?” Alisha takes the picture out of her bag and shows it to Rose, who immediately deadpans. “You’re kidding.”

Next to them in the picture - squeezed neatly into the corner, just barely in view of the camera - is a grinning Sorey. When Rose complains that it was supposed to be a cute picture of just the two of them, and how dare he photobomb, Alisha simply laughs, quietly appreciating how easy it is to have fun when she’s with her.

* * * * *

One day when they are at Alisha’s house together, a few weeks after they have started dating, Rose makes it a point to grab a pair of scissors and cleanly cut Sorey out of their first picture together.

**Author's Note:**

> A huuuuge thanks to blueskylover on tumblr for being an amazing editor and giving me ideas when I needed them! ^^


End file.
